Undergraduate
Saint Michael's students showcase art by Best Buddies-student art and buddy art-at invitational
Spreading awareness of issues faced by people with disabilities through the only Best Buddy chapter in Vermont
Contact Information:
Buff Lindau, Public Relations
802.654.2536
blindau@smcvt.edu
Saint Michael's College students are staging the 2nd annual Best Buddies Artistic Abilities Art Show with their buddies on Friday, Nov. 6, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the International Commons building on the college campus.
Saint Michael's sponsors the only Best Buddy chapter in support of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in all of Vermont, and 45 students participate in the program, with 20 buddies. Their goal is to promote one-to-one friendships between Buddies and students. The students chose to showcase both college student and buddy art to emphasize the need to treat people with disabilities with equality and integrate them into society. The show includes sculpture using recycled materials and clay, self-portraits, photography and drawings.
Saint Michael's students and their Best Buddies meet every other Sunday to have fun tie-dying, Trick-or-Treating, baking, gardening, dancing or, of course, making art. They often get together beyond the chapter events for a meal in the Saint Michael's Alliot Dining Hall or to take a walk on Church Street. Buddies range in age from late teens to 60 years old, and come from all over the state because this is the only chapter in Vermont.
"It would be great if we didn't need a program like Best Buddies because people with intellectual disabilities would be integrated into their communities," said Best Buddies Campus Director Rachel Sparks, a junior psychology major from East Bridgewater, Mass. "But since they're not—Best Buddies provides this opportunity-students and Buddies become good friends, best buddies, in fact," she said. "And we've seen participation really grow."
Best Buddies is one of the Saint Michael's MOVE, Mobilization of Volunteer Efforts, programs. MOVE, a very active, very popular organization, serves as a clearinghouse for numerous volunteer service opportunities. Part of the Office of Edmundite Campus Ministry, MOVE brings to life the deep-rooted service mission of the Edmundite tradition. Throughout the academic year, MOVE core team student leaders recruit participants (some 60 to 70 percent of the student body) for programs that range from tutoring Winooski youngsters a few blocks away to extended service trips in cities across the U.S. and around the world.
Learn What Matters at Saint Michael's College, the Edmundite Catholic liberal arts college. Saint Michael's provides education with a social conscience, producing graduates with the intellectual tools to lead a successful, purposeful life that will contribute to peace and justice in our world. Founded in 1904 by the Society of St. Edmund and headed by President John J. Neuhauser, Saint Michael's is identified by the Princeton Review as one of the nation's Best 371 Colleges. It is one of 270 colleges and universities nationwide, and one of only 20 Catholic colleges, with a Phi Beta Kappa chapter. Saint Michael's has 1,900 undergraduate students, some 500 graduate students and 100 international students. Saint Michael's students and professors have received Rhodes, Woodrow Wilson, Pickering, Guggenheim, Fulbright, and other grants. The college is one of the nation's Best Liberal Arts Colleges as listed in the 2009 U.S. News & World Report rankings. Saint Michael's is located just outside Burlington, Vermont, one of America's top college towns.
Photo: Katarina Lisaius, a junior political science major from Warren, Vt., and Paul Nichols, at last year's art show.
Buff Lindau, Public Relations
802.654.2536
blindau@smcvt.edu
Saint Michael's College students are staging the 2nd annual Best Buddies Artistic Abilities Art Show with their buddies on Friday, Nov. 6, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the International Commons building on the college campus. Saint Michael's sponsors the only Best Buddy chapter in support of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in all of Vermont, and 45 students participate in the program, with 20 buddies. Their goal is to promote one-to-one friendships between Buddies and students. The students chose to showcase both college student and buddy art to emphasize the need to treat people with disabilities with equality and integrate them into society. The show includes sculpture using recycled materials and clay, self-portraits, photography and drawings.
Saint Michael's students and their Best Buddies meet every other Sunday to have fun tie-dying, Trick-or-Treating, baking, gardening, dancing or, of course, making art. They often get together beyond the chapter events for a meal in the Saint Michael's Alliot Dining Hall or to take a walk on Church Street. Buddies range in age from late teens to 60 years old, and come from all over the state because this is the only chapter in Vermont.
"It would be great if we didn't need a program like Best Buddies because people with intellectual disabilities would be integrated into their communities," said Best Buddies Campus Director Rachel Sparks, a junior psychology major from East Bridgewater, Mass. "But since they're not—Best Buddies provides this opportunity-students and Buddies become good friends, best buddies, in fact," she said. "And we've seen participation really grow."
Best Buddies is one of the Saint Michael's MOVE, Mobilization of Volunteer Efforts, programs. MOVE, a very active, very popular organization, serves as a clearinghouse for numerous volunteer service opportunities. Part of the Office of Edmundite Campus Ministry, MOVE brings to life the deep-rooted service mission of the Edmundite tradition. Throughout the academic year, MOVE core team student leaders recruit participants (some 60 to 70 percent of the student body) for programs that range from tutoring Winooski youngsters a few blocks away to extended service trips in cities across the U.S. and around the world.
Learn What Matters at Saint Michael's College, the Edmundite Catholic liberal arts college. Saint Michael's provides education with a social conscience, producing graduates with the intellectual tools to lead a successful, purposeful life that will contribute to peace and justice in our world. Founded in 1904 by the Society of St. Edmund and headed by President John J. Neuhauser, Saint Michael's is identified by the Princeton Review as one of the nation's Best 371 Colleges. It is one of 270 colleges and universities nationwide, and one of only 20 Catholic colleges, with a Phi Beta Kappa chapter. Saint Michael's has 1,900 undergraduate students, some 500 graduate students and 100 international students. Saint Michael's students and professors have received Rhodes, Woodrow Wilson, Pickering, Guggenheim, Fulbright, and other grants. The college is one of the nation's Best Liberal Arts Colleges as listed in the 2009 U.S. News & World Report rankings. Saint Michael's is located just outside Burlington, Vermont, one of America's top college towns.
Photo: Katarina Lisaius, a junior political science major from Warren, Vt., and Paul Nichols, at last year's art show.
